to see Jessica Bradley climbing out of her Jeep.
Jessica’s wide grin was infectious. Rachel smiled back as she called out, “What are you doing here? Let me guess, your brother called you, didn’t he?”
“I wasn’t given any specifics, I was told to get over here and I obeyed. Who is this gorgeous guy? What’s going on? Todd really sounded upset on the phone. Are you okay?”
Rachel reeled from the barrage of questions being fired at her. “This is Brutus and yes, I’m fine. It seems this Canyon Cat Burglar has been using my cabin to hide his loot. I found it in the garage. Your brother and Deputy Logan are in there now.”
“No shit! Oh sorry. Oh my gosh! This guy has been hitting places for weeks. Snagging some pretty high-end stuff from what I hear. Did you say Deputy Logan was here too?” Jessica’s eyes alighted.
“Yeah, they’re both in the garage going over property sheets, taking pictures and cataloging everything. Is there something in the water around here that makes the entire police force drop dead gorgeous?”
Jessica grinned wickedly. “I know what you mean. I don’t get to see nearly enough of Mike. I’d love to sink my teeth into him. Sad to say, he can’t get past the fact that I’m Todd’s little sister.” She resigned herself to a sigh. “I’ll just go say hi to Todd and let him know I’m here. He’s concerned about you, you know.”
Rachel gave a weak laugh, “I am glad you’re here. It’s kind of creepy knowing he is still out there somewhere. Besides my other choice was your brother spending the night.”
“Ew ick. I’d pick me too.” Jessica giggled as she headed in the house. She walked through the house and found her way to the garage. Stepping through the doorway, her stomach did a flip when she saw Mike Logan. One day , you and me buddy. Smiling brightly, she called out, “Is it safe to come in or am I disturbing the crime scene?”
Todd and Mike looked up at the same time. Todd smiled and Mike looked away.
* * * *
Todd walked over to Jessica and gave her a quick hug. “Thanks for coming on such short notice.”
“You didn’t give me a lot of room to argue, but you’re welcome. How often do I get to hang out with my favorite author? Have you met her dog? Did you guys really find stuff from the break-ins here? Josie told me the insurance claims combined ran up in the high eight figures.”
“Jessica, one question at a time, alright? You didn’t see anything or hear anything about this. This guy is still out there, the less you know, the safer you stay. Got that?” he snapped gruffly. “And no, I haven’t met her dog.”
“Lighten up, Todd, I was born at night but it wasn’t last night. You asked me to come, remember? I can’t stand it when you get so intense. Are you two going to be in here much longer? Never mind, I’m going back out front with Rachel.”
“Let her know we’re just about done. Everything is cataloged and recorded. I’ll need to ask Rachel some questions before I leave, but I want to get this loaded up first,” he replied as he walked back to the piles of goods.
Jessica found Rachel sitting on the stone wall in front of the house with Brutus lying at her feet. His tail began to beat rhythmically as she walked closer. “Todd is just about done in there, he said he has to ask you some stuff and then we’ll get out of your way. Kinda freaky, huh?” Jessica asked, climbing on the wall beside Rachel.
“Yeah, it is. Why did he pick my place?”
“Your place has been empty for years. All the locals thought it was abandoned. There were even some rumors of it being haunted.”
Rachel laughed. “Haunted? You didn’t believe that, did you?”
“A child’s imagination is a very powerful tool. Todd used to scare the dickens out of me with horror stories. He and Mike made up this whole ruse about the ghost of an old miner who lived here long ago. They said he would take small children down into the mine shaft he died in
Jessica’s wide grin was infectious. Rachel smiled back as she called out, “What are you doing here? Let me guess, your brother called you, didn’t he?”
“I wasn’t given any specifics, I was told to get over here and I obeyed. Who is this gorgeous guy? What’s going on? Todd really sounded upset on the phone. Are you okay?”
Rachel reeled from the barrage of questions being fired at her. “This is Brutus and yes, I’m fine. It seems this Canyon Cat Burglar has been using my cabin to hide his loot. I found it in the garage. Your brother and Deputy Logan are in there now.”
“No shit! Oh sorry. Oh my gosh! This guy has been hitting places for weeks. Snagging some pretty high-end stuff from what I hear. Did you say Deputy Logan was here too?” Jessica’s eyes alighted.
“Yeah, they’re both in the garage going over property sheets, taking pictures and cataloging everything. Is there something in the water around here that makes the entire police force drop dead gorgeous?”
Jessica grinned wickedly. “I know what you mean. I don’t get to see nearly enough of Mike. I’d love to sink my teeth into him. Sad to say, he can’t get past the fact that I’m Todd’s little sister.” She resigned herself to a sigh. “I’ll just go say hi to Todd and let him know I’m here. He’s concerned about you, you know.”
Rachel gave a weak laugh, “I am glad you’re here. It’s kind of creepy knowing he is still out there somewhere. Besides my other choice was your brother spending the night.”
“Ew ick. I’d pick me too.” Jessica giggled as she headed in the house. She walked through the house and found her way to the garage. Stepping through the doorway, her stomach did a flip when she saw Mike Logan. One day , you and me buddy. Smiling brightly, she called out, “Is it safe to come in or am I disturbing the crime scene?”
Todd and Mike looked up at the same time. Todd smiled and Mike looked away.
* * * *
Todd walked over to Jessica and gave her a quick hug. “Thanks for coming on such short notice.”
“You didn’t give me a lot of room to argue, but you’re welcome. How often do I get to hang out with my favorite author? Have you met her dog? Did you guys really find stuff from the break-ins here? Josie told me the insurance claims combined ran up in the high eight figures.”
“Jessica, one question at a time, alright? You didn’t see anything or hear anything about this. This guy is still out there, the less you know, the safer you stay. Got that?” he snapped gruffly. “And no, I haven’t met her dog.”
“Lighten up, Todd, I was born at night but it wasn’t last night. You asked me to come, remember? I can’t stand it when you get so intense. Are you two going to be in here much longer? Never mind, I’m going back out front with Rachel.”
“Let her know we’re just about done. Everything is cataloged and recorded. I’ll need to ask Rachel some questions before I leave, but I want to get this loaded up first,” he replied as he walked back to the piles of goods.
Jessica found Rachel sitting on the stone wall in front of the house with Brutus lying at her feet. His tail began to beat rhythmically as she walked closer. “Todd is just about done in there, he said he has to ask you some stuff and then we’ll get out of your way. Kinda freaky, huh?” Jessica asked, climbing on the wall beside Rachel.
“Yeah, it is. Why did he pick my place?”
“Your place has been empty for years. All the locals thought it was abandoned. There were even some rumors of it being haunted.”
Rachel laughed. “Haunted? You didn’t believe that, did you?”
“A child’s imagination is a very powerful tool. Todd used to scare the dickens out of me with horror stories. He and Mike made up this whole ruse about the ghost of an old miner who lived here long ago. They said he would take small children down into the mine shaft he died in
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